Catching up with the times
by Shiro Hunter
Summary: When Cross had just acquired his flight skell, he suggested Gwin to visit their friend, Team Belisarda's former leader, in the maintenance center, to cheer him up after his loss if nothing else, and Gwin had all but jumped at the offer to reminisce their past journeys with his two close comrades. "He's no spy, Elma. I trusted him... I still do."
_A/N: Cat people in skells bad. Cat people in skells bAD._

 _I used to always explore with a different team than Elma's out of fear of them being too overleveled, so usually, it's just my Cross, Lao, Gwin, and L on the road for weeks at a time, exploring every nook and cranny there is. So I guess you can see where my sorta headcanon of Lao being close to the other party members aside from Doug and Lin came from. I may never be able to recruit my favorite Partisan Eagle again like the good ol' days, but it had been real fun while it lasted._

 _Basically, even moar stuff I wrote for practice. As usual, Xenoblade X belongs to Monolith Soft and all that good jazz! I'm not even going to describe how my Cross look like - I'm purposedly keeping his appearance vague so you all are free to think of this Cross as your own! Also, I'm aware that the Mimeosome Treatment Center is supposed to have capsules, instead of beds, but... I'm sorry, I just can't write anything seriously when it's just capsules. I like to think the Mims get transferred to a hospital-like room to heal on its own after the treatment. Hey, it's called a_ fan _fic for a reason, right?_

 _Read and Reviews are always appreciated!_

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 ** _Spoilers up until the end of Chapter 9 of Xenoblade Chronicles X. You've been warned._**

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"...And then- have you seen that giant orb-thing sitting on an even bigger tree in Sylvalum?"

Cross almost fell out of his chair when he started making wild gestures in the air that not even his best friends could understand, grinning ear-to-ear as he excitedly continued:

"Turns out, it had an opening in the front that that that a skell can go through! I mean, who knew, right?"

"Cross, you're starting to sound like a Ma-non." A just as excited-looking Gwin remarked from his place beside Cross, his own lips curling into a smile that turned into a full-blown laughter when Cross repeated the sentence with his best imitation of a Ma-non's high-pitched voice.

From the bed beside them, Lao chuckled along. "Do that again and I swear, I'll get you a recommendation to work at C&C one of these days."

The three burst out laughing again, filling the treatment room with a warm atmosphere that Lao honestly hadn't been able to experience as of late. After his run-in with the Ganglion which had wiped out Team Belisarda, the Pathfinder had been admitted to the Mims Treatment Center and stuck there until his unit's wounds could heal. Cross had suggested Gwin to come visit Lao once their missions was over, to cheer their friend up after his team members' 'death' if nothing else, _and_ because Cross had experienced how unpleasant it was to be stuck in the silent and lifeless treatment center for days at a time, not thanks to a certain incident that still lingers at the back of his mind, and Gwin had practically jumped at the offer.

"You should've seen his face when we entered this kind of lake inside the sphere!" Gwin added. "He was practically squealing, 'Gwin! _Gwin_!' As he shook my shoulders! Can you believe that?"

"And who screamed back, 'I know, man!' And shook _my_ shoulders even harder, huh?!" Cross laughed, giving the Interceptor a light punch.

By the time he'd finished, Lao's laughter had calmed down. "Looks like someone's been having fun with their new flight skells," He said. "Where else did you two go? Tried going past Celestial Ascent yet?"

Cross shook his head, still snickering. "Not yet. But I heard there's an unexplored territory there, so we're planning on exploring there soon."

"Actually, if possible..." Gwin added. "We'd like you to come with us as well."

"Who, me?" Lao raised a brow, his smile turning into a bitter one as he directed his gaze to the ceiling. "You know I'll be stuck here for another few weeks at best, right? If you want to explore that place, just go on ahead without me."

"Then we'll wait for a few weeks to do so." Cross insisted, the hint of jesting previously present in his voice completely gone. "L's busy manning his new shop, too, but I'm sure we can all find some time to explore together again like the good ol' days."

"Wow, way to make me feel old, Cross." Gwin chuckled. "Can't believe it's only been a few weeks since we all started hanging out together, huh?"

Lao seemed hesitant, but eventually grinned and answered:

"You mean since this guy dragged us all on a two-weeks journey across every nook and cranny of Noctilum, twenty four-seven?"

"When we encountered a terrifying eel-like monster inside an underground lake and called it the ' _eel of spook_ ' since? How can I forget!"

Once again, the three burst out laughing, Gwin actually doubling over and clutching his sides to contain his laughter while Lao had to roll to his side and clutch his stomach out of fear of opening his newly-treated wounds.

"Seriously, though..." Once their laughter had died out, Cross began, leaning back to his chair as he did. "We really wished you could come with us."

Silence befell them, and Lao raised his brow once more. "What's this all of a sudden?"

Cross shrugged. "It just... doesn't feel right, not travelling with you when Gwin, L and I are present, you know? And besides..."

Now it was Gwin's turn to raise a brow. "Besides..?" He prodded when Cross trailed off.

"N-no, nevermind." Cross shook his head. "It's nothing."

Putting on a forced smile, Cross directed his gaze to the ground. _No,_ He wanted to say, but the words never made it past the lump in his throat. _No, it's actually anything_ but _nothing. Especially if what Elma said is true..._

* * *

 _"Cross, may I speak with you for a moment?"_

 _The new Pathfinder stopped in his tracks, already mid-way through stretching when he let Tatsu brush past him and turned towards his team leader. "Sure, Elma. What is it?"_

 _Elma crossed her arms, briefly glancing left and right to make sure no one else in the barracks was within earshot of what she was about to say. "It's... about Lao." She began, hesitating for a moment before she continued. "I've talked to Doug about this and I... need to hear_ your _thoughts as well."_

 _"I have a suspicion." She continued. "Well, it's more than a suspicion, actually. But... don't you think what happened with the Ganglions as of late is... too much to be a coincidence?"_

 _Cross frowned. "What are you suggesting?"_

 _"Think about it," Like steel, her eyes did not waver, even when one of her closest comrade's tone lacked the cheerfulness it usually had. "The Ganglion struggled to retrieve the Vita - the alien mech we extracted in a mission Lao suggested_ and _participated in himself. Afterwards, they came for it knowing_ exactly _where it was stored. When Lao's team was away from guard duty, no less."_

 _"Elma, Lao is no spy!" Cross snapped, raising his voice but immediately closing his mouth when he remembered that Lin was sleeping in the room next door._

 _"May I remind you how he gave us false coordinates for the Lifehold he supposedly found in Sylvalum?"_

 _"I-!" Cross flinched at the memories of the Ganglion, or rather, Wrothian ambush, hands unconsciously massaging the spot where his bruised ribs once were as his eyes wandered to the new scar he'd acquired from Ga Jiarg on his right shoulder. "It's- There must be some explanation to this!"_

 _"I... I still trust him, Elma." The 'Rook' said after a moment of silence. "He's done so much for us. I'm sure there must be a reason..."_

 _"... I know." For once, Elma let her look soften, looking up almost sympathetically at the slightly taller BLADE. "We owe him so much. Personally, I wish this is just a freaky coincidence, but..."_

 _A sigh. "Look, all I'm saying is... Don't let your guard down, alright, Cross?"_

 _"Cross?"_

* * *

"Cross!"

Cross flinched, jerking his head up only to come face-to-face with Gwin, who had apparently been waving his hand in front of Cross for God knew how long. "I-I'm, uh, yeah?"

"Uhm, Mira to Cross! You finally back, buddy? You've been zoning out for a while now."

Scratching the back of his head, Cross let out a chuckle. "Sorry," He said. "Must be, uh... _tired_ , from laughing so much. Heh."

"...Riiight." Apparently unconvinced, Gwin raised a brow. "Anyway, I was saying it's pretty late already and we should probably return to the barracks soon, unless you want another session of lecturing from Elma for not reporting our mission yet."

Cross froze.

"Aw, crap!" He bolted upright, upending the chair behind him. "We haven't done that, have we? Shit! She's _really_ gonna let me have it this time... Lao, see you later! Gwin, I'm borrowing your skell - we need to get to Eleanora, and _quick_!"

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 _A/N: For those unaware, Gwin and Cross were talking about the Unexplored Territory, Noctilucent Sphere Interior in Sylvalum, and the place beyond the Celestial Ascent Lao was talking about is the Unexplored Territory, Divine Roost in Noctilum, where the Endbringer lives. Them practically squealing and their encounter with the 'eel of spook' may or may not be inspired by personal experience when playing XBC X with sister._

 _Real talk, though? Flying skells are SOOO AWEESOOMMEEEEEEEE! Spores, though. I seriously need someone to fix the damn weather when that happens... *shudders*_


End file.
